Three Christmases
by writergirl3005
Summary: The Christmases that Diana celebrates over the century. Gift fic for stevetrevvvor; written for the Wondertrev Secret Santa.


A/N: Sorry for taking so long with this fic. I've been swamped with work, illness and family stuff for the past couple of weeks. I really hope that you enjoy this fic.

* * *

**1918**

It was Etta who told Diana about Christmas and the reason they had for celebrating it.

"Do you have any plans for Christmas Diana?" she asked one night as the two of them sat down for dinner.

It had only been a couple of weeks since Diana had returned to from the front. The pain of Steve's death was still raw. But Diana took comfort in the fact that the armistice has been signed. The war had ended, and peace was back in Man's World. She could take some comfort in that.

She was staying with Etta for now. (Etta had offered and refused to take no for an answer. She was a force of nature when she wanted to be.)

"What is Christmas?" Diana asked.

A look passed over Etta's face. "Yes, you wouldn't know about it. It's a festival, a religious celebration of sorts. We celebrate the birth of our saviour, Jesus Christ."

Diana still didn't understand, so Etta took some time to explain the story behind the festival.

"This would be the first Christmas after the war," Etta mused. "We have a lot to celebrate. And a lot to mourn."

An image of Steve flashed into Diana's mind. Not for the first time, she wished that he was actually here with her. He should have been alive. He should have been the one to show her and tell her about Man's World. It just wasn't fair.

_You expect a battle to be fair. It will never be fair._

And neither was life. There was still Diana could do but to live on. Steve would have wanted that. "I have no plans for the celebration," said Diana. "I would like to join you for your celebrations if that is possible."

Etta smiled. "Well, I would be going for the midnight mass at my church. And a group of us have volunteered to help out at the foundling hospital near our church. And I will be having dinner with my fiancé and his family. Would you like to join me for all of it?"

Etta's plans had required some clarification for Diana (who did not know what some of those things meant), but Diana had agreed to join Etta.

As Diana watched Etta and her friends help out at the foundling hospital, handing out presents, playing with the children, singing and dancing, her resolve to help and protect humanity strengthened. This was where their greatest strength lay. That despite all the evil that plagued the world, there were still people that helped. That there were people who were willing to do the right thing.

Steve was right. Humanity was worth saving. She will honour his sacrifice by helping as much as she could.

* * *

**1984**

Losing Steve was so much worse the second time.

Unlike before, Diana knew exactly how long she had before Steve disappeared. Two weeks. That was how long it would take for the remnants of Maxwell Lord's power to fade completely.

In some ways, knowing was better. Diana wouldn't be spending every single moment she had with Steve dreading that it might be the last.

In other ways, knowing was worse. Diana could feel the time slipping away, like sand falling through the hourglass.

The last thing that Steve did before he disappeared was to kiss her and whisper softly, "I'm glad we had more time."

She spent the rest of the night crying.

In the morning, while cleaning out her closet (putting away the clothes she had bought for Steve, clothes that wouldn't be needed anymore), she found the box. It was a mid-sized rectangular box, wrapped in red paper and tied with a green ribbon. A sticky note was placed at the top, reading 'Do not open until Christmas' in Steve's handwriting.

Diana spent some time tracing the letters, taking note of the loops and swirls. As much as she wanted to open the box, Diana restrained herself. After all, Christmas was only a couple of months away. She could stand to wait that long.

* * *

The minute the clock struck midnight on December 25th, Diana rushed to the spot where she had kept the gift Steve had given her. (She hadn't made any effort to decorate her apartment. She didn't want to celebrate this year.)

Diana carefully unwrapped the present and opened the box. She smiled when she saw what was inside. A few candid photos of herself and Steve, a silver bracelet with a few charms, an envelope with her name on it, and a cassette tape. There was a sticky note stuck to the tape. 'Watch this first', it said. Diana closed her eyes and held the tape close to her chest, remembering how she had taught Steve to use a video recorder.

It was a twist from their previous dynamic, and Diana had enjoyed being the one to guide Steve into the new era.

Diana slid the tape into her player and switched on the TV. She pressed play, and the video started. An image of Steve appeared on the screen. Diana took a brief moment to wonder when he had made the tape.

"God, I hope I'm doing this right, and this message gets recorded. Maybe I should write a letter as well. Just in case this doesn't work," he said.

Steve then smiled, his blue eyes twinkling. "Hey Angel. I really hope that you did wait until Christmas to watch this video. Knowing you, it could have gone either way. I don't blame you if you couldn't wait."

He swallowed, and a resigned, but determined look crossed his face. "At the time I'm making this, we only have three days left. Not a lot, I know. It's hard, knowing that our time together is limited." He sighed. "I know that you'll feel guilty about it; being the cause of my death for a second time." A bit of steel entered into his eyes at this point. "But you need to know, I will never blame you for this. You did what you need to do to save the world. It was the right thing to do, and I know that the knowledge doesn't make things any easier.

"I'm glad that I got to spend these few weeks with you. I'm grateful that I got to experience those things we talk about - making breakfast, reading the paper, all the things that people do when there are no wars to fight. I'm glad that I got to spend more time with you. That was all that I wished for, and I got it. I will treasure them forever. Diana, I love you. I will carry you in my heart always."

The video recording ended at that point. With trembling fingers, Diana slit open the envelope and read the letter that was inside. Steve had said the exact same things he did in the video, just as a precaution if he made a mistake while filming.

She carefully set the letter aside and fell to her knees, sobbing. While they did have more time; it still didn't feel enough. How could a few weeks be enough for a lifetime of love?

But at least this time, she had more things to remember him by.

Pictures, the video, the clothes he wore that will still smell of him for some weeks to come. She had coped with less before. She will survive this, no matter what it took.

* * *

**2018**

"Diana, Diana, it's Christmas!"

Diana cracked her eyes open, a smile on her face. It warmed her heart to see Steve's little boy excitement at it being Christmas morning. It was beyond adorable.

She gently kissed him. "Good morning Steve, and yes, it is Christmas." She pressed another kiss to his lips.

"I wanted to open the presents first thing in the morning," said Steve, pulling her closer and burying his face in her shoulder. "But I think that can wait till later."

Diana smiled. "I like the way you think," she said and rolled them over so that she was on top.

All in all, it was an excellent start to a Christmas morning.

Steve pulled out all the stops to make a wonderful Christmas lunch. Diana kept away from the kitchen, knowing that she would be more of a hindrance than a help in that respect. She spent the time catching up on her work emails and texting Lois, who was spending her Christmas at the Kent Farm.

She and Steve had decided to open their presents after they had lunch. Steve was vibrating in excitement about the prospect of opening presents, his eyes darted to the Christmas tree every few minutes.

Diana loved every single minute of it. Soon, lunch was finished. Steve practically sprung out of his chair and run towards the tree. By the time Diana had entered the living room, he had already started to open his first present. Diana merely shook her head, smiling indulgently at Steve's antics. "You just couldn't wait, could you?" she teased him.

"Never could, ever since I was a kid," said Steve. "I was the kid that would wake up my parents as six in the morning at Christmas, demanding that I be allowed to open my presents."

"They must have been very annoyed at being woken up like that," said Diana.

"They were," said Steve, "But they made sure not to show it to me." He finished opening up the present, which was a book on aviation history from his parents. "Perhaps you could join the Trevor family for Christmas next year? All of them are dying to meet you."

Diana groaned. "What did you tell them about me?"

"Only good things Angel," he said.

She snorted. "Knowing you, you would have made it seem like I could walk on water. That's a lot of pressure for me to live up to."

Steve kissed her. "They would love you, you don't have to worry about it. How can anyone not love someone as amazing as you?"

It was impossible for her not to smile at that.

Soon they came to the presents they got for each other. Steve had laughed when he saw that Diana had gotten him a watch. "So that we would always have more time," she said.

Steve was nervous when it was time for Diana to open his present. "I really hope you like it, Diana," he said.

It was a small red jewellery box, with the logo of a jeweller's that she recognised. It was a local shop that often made custom pieces. "Steve," she started to say, but he cut her off.

"No expense is too much for you. You deserve the world, Diana," he said.

Diana didn't fight him on this, knowing that he would not be swayed on that at all.

Nestled inside the box was a silver necklace with a snowflake pendant that was encrusted with tiny diamonds. "Steve, it is beautiful," said Diana.

Steve helped Diana put on the necklace. He picked up his phone and scrolled through it. He tapped the screen, and a song emanated from the speakers. With the first few notes, Diana recognised it. It was the song that Charlie had sung all those years ago, the time she and Steve danced in the snow.

"Steve," said Diana in an awed voice.

"It's even snowing outside," he said. "Looks like a sign from the universe, doesn't it?" He held out his hand to her. Diana grasped it, and the two of them stood up. They placed their arms around each other, and they began to sway to the music.

"We've had breakfast so many times, woke up together, read the paper and went to work," he said.

"All we need to do is to get married and have some babies," said Diana.

They pressed their foreheads together. "We have all the time in the world for all of that," said Diana. The two of them shared a kiss.

There would always be wars to fight. But for the moments in between, they could have what they always wanted.


End file.
